Recent Developments in Pre-Treatment and Nanocellulose Production From Lignocellulosic Materials

Abstract

186Lignocellulosic material from agricultural waste is readily available and has great potential as a cheap and sustainable raw material for nanocellulose production. Nano-sized cellulosic materials have received much attention due to their excellent properties, high strength, low cost, biodegradability, abundance and renewable properties. The advantage of using nano-sized cellulosic materials is not only because of these properties but also due to their dimensions, in the nanometer scale, open up many possible properties that are yet to be discovered. In principle, nano-sized cellulosic materials can be extracted from a variety of cellulosic sources including plants, bacteria, algae and animals using various procedures. However, the main challenge is to find a process to obtain a higher yield of nanocellulose with efficient isolation from lignocellulosic sources. It is known that the combination of two or more treatment methods can increase the yield and rate of fibrillation as well as reduce energy consumption during processing. Appropriate isolation techniques also promote the excellent properties of nanocellulose. This chapter addresses the cellulose classification, a general overview of nanocellulose from various lignocellulosic sources, and the available factors in the extraction of nanocelluloses, followed by introducing and comprehensively discussing various nanocellulose isolation techniques.